Sub-250$ HOTAS Plz

[Zakatak]

I am currently using a Logitech 3D Pro I bought to replace my Saitek AV8R. I can't say I'm really happy with this joystick actually, I find it awkward to use. There aren't enough buttons to give me neccessary functions, which means I have to add a +Shift/+Ctrl/+Alt command for each buttons, and reaching everywhere is really unnatural. Which HOTAS out of these should I get? Something under 225$ would be nice since I'm like 16 and currently jobless.

 

X52 Standard (heard and experienced things about "center-play" with Saiteks due to shitty spring, but it is the cheapest besides the T.flight)

X52 Pro (pushing it a little, only if the difference is really really worth it, what exactly does this MFD do?)

CH Combatstick + CH Throttle (don't know if I need 6 hatsticks but its cheapish and very reliable supposedly)

Logitech G940 (this looks just plain perfect, but ive heard bad things, and 300$ is REALLY pushing, pedals intregue me but not so much the FF)

T.Flight HOTAS X (cheapest by a nautical mile, but does it have anything my joystick doesn't?)

 

Before you bring up the X65F, Warthog, Cougar, and Fighterstick, remember the price tag, remember the buyer ;)

Wow, I should stop making so many threads before somebody bans me...

 

Edited July 10, 2011 by Zakatak

[MTFDarkEagle]

X52 pro is my recommendation.

[Cali]

I'd get CH at of all of those, that's what I have and it works prefectly and their forums are above all others. Here are there forums http://www.ch-hangar.com/forum/forum.php

 

Out of all of those you will not get better quality then CH. You will use all the hats and buttons, trust me. The CH stick and throttle will cost you about $200. I don't like the CH throttle (its a slider) but it works very well.

[98abaile]

I am currently using a Logitech 3D Pro I bought to replace my Saitek AV8R. I can't say I'm really happy with this joystick actually, I find it awkward to use. There aren't enough buttons to give me neccessary functions, which means I have to add a +Shift/+Ctrl/+Alt command for each buttons, and reaching everywhere is really unnatural. Which HOTAS out of these should I get? Something under 225$ would be nice since I'm like 16 and currently jobless.

 

X52 Standard (heard and experienced things about "center-play" with Saiteks due to shitty spring, but it is the cheapest by far)

X52 Pro (pushing it a little, only if the difference is really really worth it, what exactly does this MFD do?)

CH Combatstick + CH Throttle (don't know if I need 6 hatsticks but its cheapish and very reliable supposedly)

Logitech G940 (this looks just plain perfect, but ive heard bad things, and 300$ is REALLY pushing, pedals intregue me but not so much the FF)

T.Flight HOTAS X (cheapest by a nautical mile, but does it have anything my joystick doesn't?)

 

Before you bring up the X65F, Warthog, Cougar, and Fighterstick, remember the price tag, remember the buyer ;)

Wow, I should stop making so many threads before somebody bans me...

 

You need to remember that you can set any button to act as a modifier and that you can use multiple modifiers. So you could set all six buttons on the base of your 3D pro.

 

I can't remember the maths, and I'm not sitting down writing out tables, but if you use all six base buttons as modifiers and used no, single, double and triple modifiers, you'd have 42 triggers, 42 8-way hats and 210 buttons, for a total of 588 mappable functions.

[Zakatak]

I can't remember the maths, and I'm not sitting down writing out tables, but if you use all six base buttons as modifiers and used no, single, double and triple modifiers, you'd have 42 triggers, 42 8-way hats and 210 buttons, for a total of 588 mappable functions.

 

That is what I'm doing right now, and trust me, it isn't fun. You have no idea how awkward it feels hold Shift + bt.9 to lower full flaps, Ctrl + Hatstick Up to zoom in, or Alt + Button 10 to change lighting. Remebering exactly where I set all those functions would be the worst part.

 

CH Throttle and Stick or X52 Pro I'm thinking. Does the Pro have a better spring system, does it have any center play (that causes it to sit anywhere within a few millimeters of dead center)

Edited July 10, 2011 by Zakatak

[Dirtyloser]

That is what I'm doing right now, and trust me, it isn't fun. You have no idea how awkward it feels hold Shift + bt.9 to lower full flaps, Ctrl + Hatstick Up to zoom in, or Alt + Button 10 to change lighting. Remebering exactly where I set all those functions would be the worst part.

 

CH Throttle and Stick or X52 Pro I'm thinking. Does the Pro have a better spring system, does it have any center play (that causes it to sit anywhere within a few millimeters of dead center)

 

Ive own a X52pro and would go for the CH Stuff cause of better quality and the hat switches.

All the bling bling LEDs and the MFD on the x52 are nice but useless.

The X52pro has a poor quality too; loosing the center position, stuttering rotarys (cant use them for zoom in game) and the ministick causes input by itself.

[Zakatak]

One thing I noticed with CH: no twist function

 

This means I need to buy some pedals too, in which case I might as well go for the G940 since it will cost the same. How is the G940? I know there programming software isn't great, but I have never even used SST anyway. Does it remain the center without jittering all over the damn place?

[Cali]

Read reviews and problems people have been having with all of them. I bet CH is has the least amount of problems. No twist function shouldn't be a killer, but if you want a lower quality product, choose one of the other HOTAS.

[Dudikoff]

Ive own a X52pro and would go for the CH Stuff cause of better quality and the hat switches.

All the bling bling LEDs and the MFD on the x52 are nice but useless.

The X52pro has a poor quality too; loosing the center position, stuttering rotarys (cant use them for zoom in game) and the ministick causes input by itself.

 

Well, I own Saitek X36 and X52Pro. Though I personally dislike the CH products at their current state of design to the point that I'd never buy them, I have to agree with the above assessment with the exception that I find the LEDs on the buttons to be useful for playing at night in a dark room and haven't had centering problems with the X52Pro (but did occasionally notice it on the X36). The rotaries ARE complete junk most of the time (either don't center correctly or start delaying) and the ministick starts pulling to one side often enough to be a PITA (I tried opening the damn handle to see what can be done about it but messed up the final screw as it was screwed on quite tightly and there's not enough room to work with so I gave up).

 

I'm still considering between the Warthog and the Saitek X65 and both seem to be some kind of lotteries in their own ways.

[98abaile]

That is what I'm doing right now, and trust me, it isn't fun. You have no idea how awkward it feels hold Shift + bt.9 to lower full flaps, Ctrl + Hatstick Up to zoom in, or Alt + Button 10 to change lighting. Remebering exactly where I set all those functions would be the worst part.

 

CH Throttle and Stick or X52 Pro I'm thinking. Does the Pro have a better spring system, does it have any center play (that causes it to sit anywhere within a few millimeters of dead center)

That's why I said set buttons 7 - 12 as modifiers, that way you never have to move your hands from their positions. People tend to poo poo the 3D pro, but actually you could potentially control every single switch in cockpit with it without ever taking your hands off of it.

 

Edit:

I remembered the formula (and the function on my calculator). With buttons 7-12 set as modifiers (for 63 different combinations), the total number of mappable functions on the 3D pro is 882 without ever taking your hands off the stick.

Edited July 10, 2011 by 98abaile

[S77th-konkussion]

One thing I noticed with CH: no twist function

 

This means I need to buy some pedals too, in which case I might as well go for the G940 since it will cost the same. How is the G940? I know there programming software isn't great, but I have never even used SST anyway. Does it remain the center without jittering all over the damn place?

 

http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1171393&postcount=14

 

 

CH. Srsly..

 

(I have no idea where you are in the world- this is US$ and assumes you are in the US.. If you're not- disregard)

Edited July 11, 2011 by S77th-konkussion

[galagamo]

I would recommend the X52 over the G940, the center slop, is disgusting.

Not to mention you'll need to dis assemble the throttle out of the box to free up a wire to prevent rotary spiking

[Zakatak]

I would recommend the X52 over the G940, the center slop, is disgusting.

Not to mention you'll need to dis assemble the throttle out of the box to free up a wire to prevent rotary spiking

 

Is the "center slop" like what is found on the Extreme 3D Pro? Because I love that shiz.

[galagamo]

Is the "center slop" like what is found on the Extreme 3D Pro? Because I love that shiz.

The center slop is where its loose in center, I srsly doubt you'd love having to fight it

[EtherealN]

I'd recommend either x52 or CH. I haven't used CH since flight school, but I found them nice back then when the weather prohibited flying for real, and the Combatstick has a layout that'll be easier to press into service as far as deciding on good mapping goes than the x52. Needing to buy pedals might of course be a bother, but there's some relatively cheap sets out there like the Pro Flight by Saitek, which is what I use.

 

The g940 is something I'd personally caution against. Never tried one myself but from friends and acquaintances I've pretty much only heard about constant problems and RMA's.

[Zakatak]

I'm scared away by the X52 mainly because of that spring system. It is IDENTICLE to the spring found on my old AV8R. You could calibrate that thing 8 times a day, and within 10 minutes, the joystick would be stuck WAY off the X axis, with the stick perfectly centered. It was unplayable. Hell, even on the off chance it was calibrated, there was annoying "center play" that caused jiggling.

 

"Center slop" sounds like a god send in comparison, even if it pales in comparison to the CH Products which I can't find anywhere. How reliable have you guys found the X52, and is the X52 Pro at all better in this regard? Having the axis off when the stick is centered is a game ruiner.

[MTFDarkEagle]

Well, I had a x52 for many years and I never ever had any calibration issues whatsoever.

[Sarge55]

I used X-52Pro for many years and didn't have any issues with it. It does have a double centering spring where as the first version only had one IIRC.

 

The only gripe with the stick I had was after a while the collar would bind slightly and made precise adjustments difficult. However, once I found the right lubricant it was a smooth as silk. It's in my closet as a trusty back-up.

 

Now, SST (programing software) on the other hand I found to be very problematic and gave up on it after a while. Although I lost a little functionality I programmed in game and it worked flawlessly.

[Zakatak]

I have never even opened programming software for any of my sticks, ever. Lol. Ingame is fine.

 

Looking at X52 Pro, although you guys need to try harder if you want me to disregard the G940 entirely ;) (does the X52P have a ministick on it?)

[MTFDarkEagle]

(does the X52P have a ministick on it?)

Yep.

[galagamo]

you guys need to try harder if you want me to disregard the G940 entirely ;)

Can't say we didn't warn ya. Heck maybe you'll get a good one lol.

[Cali]

Get whatever you want, we gave you more then enough info on them.

[mikoyan]

if you don't have the money for pedals get the x-52; it is not the best but it is very versatile and has a decent price; it has a good programmability and it has good precision. My x-52 has 5 years and only now is showing symptoms of wear; the rotaries do spike; specially in positions in the middle of the band; and the sticks tent to turn a bit to the right tanks to wear on the stick itself; but you can cured by using death bands or by trim. considering that it is 5 years old and a refurnish product i can say that the stick has been a great buy for me.

I guess none of the new sticks are perfect; the ideal stick would be something like the a-10 hotas with the force feedback of the a Microsoft sidewinder. Unfortunately you would have to build your own. Some people had done it with the f-16 sticks but cost a ton of money to get the parts.

[Zakatak]

I'm going to scan around for an X52 Pro, then hope to God/Allah/Science that the centering mechanism doesn't suck.

 

Thanks guys. And to the guy who said the X52P has a ministick, you know what I meant right? X/Y axis rather then just 8-way switches? That would be really handy for the Shkval/Radar cursor

[3instein]

X52 pro for sale

 

I noticed this on e-bay today,seems like a really good bet.If I had any spare cash I would get it myself :(

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120748822584&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

 

X52 pro for £35.00 Inc postage,its a return though untested,but hey.....need to be quick as its the last one.

 

 

 

edit: item now sold.

Edited July 13, 2011 by 3instein
item now sold